As he that watcheth doth sleep, in order to some end; so he who keepeth the spiritual watch must set himself designedly to avoid sin, upon a prospect of Christ's coming, and the uncertainty of [the timing of] it.

Particularly He cautioneth His disciples against luxury and worldly-mindedness. The first He expresseth under the notions of gluttony and drunkenness, which are two eminent species of it. The latter, under the notion of the "cares of this life"; not necessary and provident cares, but superfluous and distracting cares. These things He presseth them to avoid, lest they should be surprised by Christ's coming, as He tells them the most of the world would be.

He further exhorteth them to "pray always":

Ephesians 6:18 -"Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints."

Colossians 4:2- "Continue in prayer, and watch in the same with thanksgiving."

He further presseth both these duties in those words, "That ye may be accounted worthy to escape all these things that shall come to pass"; those that should come to pass at or before the destruction of Jerusalem [verses 8- 24], or afterward [verses 25-33]; and to stand before the Son of Man, that is, in the last judgment; for "The ungodly shall not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous" (Psalm 1:5).

The Truth:

"But ye, brethren, are not in darkness,that that day should overtake you as a thief.

Ye are all the children of light, and the children of the day;we are not of the night, nor of darkness.

Therefore let us not sleep, as do others;but let us watch and be sober.

For they that sleep sleep in the night;and they that be drunken are drunken in the night.

About Me

Check your daily "HERESCOPE." Herescope is an online journal revealing heresies and false teachings affecting the church today. Copyright 2005-2018 held by the author or IRG, Inc. unless otherwise noted. Herescope is a term coined by Lynn Leslie literally meaning "scoping out a heresy." Herescope began as a regular magazine column in The Christian Conscience magazine published during 1995-1998 by IRG, Inc. The Discernment Research Group is an ad hoc fellowship of Christian researchers with roots dating back to 1985.